A bit of a stretch

Last week, Bob Schaffer, candidate for Senate in Colorado, claimed he shut down a sweatshop in the Mariana Islands. The problem, of course, is he doesn't have much evidence to back up this claim.

The Denver Post analyzed this claim. This Spring, Schaffer said the sweatshops "imported labor" should be a model for the U.S. An attorney representing who negotiated settlements on behalf of garment workers, said it was bankruptcy, not government intervention, that led to the shut downs.

"You admitted earlier this year that you neither sought nor received confirmation that the sweatshop you reportedly visited on your first night in the Northern Mariana Islands wasshut down. Can you recall the name of this sweatshop, its location, or its owner? How didyou receive the information that it was shut down? How soon after you returned to Washington did you receive this information?

Political campaigns are notorious for being loose with the truth. Without evidence to backup this claim, your campaign risks abandoning it altogether. On behalf of Campaign Money Watch, I urge you to provide answers to these questions as well as any evidence that documents your answers. For our part, we have not been able to find evidence that you – or any other member of Congress – had any involvement in helping to shut down any sweatshop on the Northern Mariana Islands.